Protests result in 102 attacks against journalists.

Elaine Patricia Cruz
Reporter from Agência Brasil

Sao Paulo - One and two cases of aggression against journalists were recorded during the coverage of demonstrations across the country since June. Twenty-five came from activists and 77 from military police and agents of the National Force. The data was released today (28) by the Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism (Abraji).

Photojournalist Sérgio Silva, who works as a freelancer, is part of this statistic. “My case became quite well-known because of the brutality and the abuse of violence. I don't have much to say about June 13th. In short: I was assaulted by the Military Police [PM]. It was a rubber bullet shot, and unfortunately, I was hit in the left eye. The bullet that hit me was a direct hit. I have been diagnosed with 100% vision loss in my left eye. And this is very difficult since I use my eye as my work tool,” he said in a press interview. Sérgio Silva has filed a lawsuit seeking compensation from the State for the violence he suffered.

When presenting the survey figures, the executive director of Abraji, Guilherme Alpendre, said that the organization has observed an increase in violence against journalists over the past three years. "It [violence] is increasing discreetly in the number of homicides," he stated. According to him, five to eight journalists are murdered each year.

But according to Alpendre, cases of aggression have been frequent, increasing since last year's elections and intensifying with the demonstrations. "In 2013, counting from the protests of June 13th until 12:30 pm today, we have reached 102 aggressions against journalists in protests," said Alpendre, during an interview at the headquarters of the Union of Professional Journalists of the State of São Paulo (SJSP), in the capital of São Paulo.

Of the total 102 attacks, 39 occurred in the state of São Paulo, with 38 of them in the capital: six were committed by protesters and 33 by police officers. In Rio de Janeiro, there were 24 cases, 23 of them in the capital, and ten of them were perpetrated by activists. The latest episodes of violence against journalists occurred on October 21st, when nine professionals were attacked during demonstrations in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.

According to the São Paulo Journalists' Union, the violence against media professionals, especially during the June protests, "surpassed all previously known statistics on violence." Until then, according to the union, the most violent episode occurred in May 2011, during the Marijuana March, when six journalists were assaulted. "This is therefore a political case because the Brazilian State is responsible for this aggression [against journalists]. The Military Police is the catalyst for this violence against journalists," said José Augusto Camargo, president of the organization.

The journalists most affected are photographers and cameramen. According to Esdras Martins, secretary of the Association of Photojournalists of São Paulo (Arfoc-SP), this occurs mainly because of the actions of these professionals during coverage, as they are always close to the demonstrators and the police during the conflicts. "They [cameramen and photographers] need to be close. The contact between the cameraman and the photographer with the demonstration is very close," he said.

Adriano Lima, a photographer for the Brazil Photo Press agency, was struck with batons on the 21st while attempting to photograph a protester being detained by police. He believes one of the reasons for the attacks against journalists is the lack of proper identification of professionals and inadequate training for covering protests. "Our positioning may be wrong due to a lack of guidance from the Military Police," he said.

The union and the Military Police intend to meet soon in São Paulo to discuss a way to prevent attacks against media professionals.

In 2012, a study by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) indicated that Brazil ranks 11th in the list of countries that do not punish crimes committed against media professionals.

 

Editing: Aécio Amado